Group dislikes 2nd special prosecutor in Laquan McDonald shooting

Kane County State's Attorney Joseph McMahon was officially sworn in Thursday to prosecute Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke in the Laquan McDonald shooting case. He said it will be the state's "burden to prove this defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt." August 4, 2016. (CBS Chicago)

Kane County State's Attorney Joseph McMahon was officially sworn in Thursday to prosecute Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke in the Laquan McDonald shooting case. He said it will be the state's "burden to prove this defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt." August 4, 2016. (CBS Chicago)

Lawyers for a coalition that sought a special prosecutor in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald by a Chicago police officer reacted with dismay at the appointment Thursday of Kane County State's Attorney Joseph McMahon, saying they had hoped for someone who was "fully independent" of law enforcement.

The lawyers did not return telephone calls but issued a statement saying McMahon's selection stood "in stark contrast" to the appointment last week of Patricia Brown Holmes to investigate the conduct of other officers at McDonald's shooting.

They had little specific to say about McMahon but praised Holmes as "an African-American with extensive experience in Cook County and a reputation for fairness and commitment to discovering the truth."

But Dan Webb, co-chairman of the powerful Winston & Strawn law firm who has acted as a special prosecutor on several occasions, came to McMahon's defense, saying he has "a good reputation and a lot of credibility."

McMahon, following his appointment by Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan, told reporters he had a single goal — "to find the truth" — but he declined to say if, as part of his review, he would look into whether the first-degree murder charges against Officer Jason Van Dyke should be dropped or reduced.

"I don't want to talk about it today," he said at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. "I have been appointed to prosecute this case against this defendant. We'll do that to the best of our ability."

Before Gaughan imposed a "gag" order on lawyers in the case, Van Dyke's attorney had long maintained that the officer was "overcharged for political reasons" and expressed hope the special prosecutor would recognize that.

"From the beginning, we have said this was a tragedy, not a first-degree murder," attorney Daniel Herbert said as recently as June.

Two special prosecutors have been named in the highly charged case — one to prosecute Van Dyke and another to investigate whether charges should be brought against other officers or police supervisors for allegedly covering up Van Dyke's conduct.

A coalition of about 25 community groups, prominent attorneys and a member of McDonald's family had sought a special prosecutor earlier this year while Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez was in the midst of a heated re-election battle. They argued that Alvarez had a cozy relationship with the Chicago police union, creating a conflict of interest. After her resounding loss in the Democratic primary, Alvarez withdrew from the Van Dyke prosecution. She denied any conflict but said a special prosecutor would "provide continuity in the handling of this very important and complicated case."

The dashboard camera video of the white officer shooting the black teen has caused a firestorm of controversy and led to calls for major reforms amid a U.S. Justice Department investigation of police practices in Chicago. The shooting took place in October 2014, but the officer wasn't charged until late last November, hours before a judge ordered the release of the video showing Van Dyke shooting McDonald 16 times as he walked away from police with a knife in his hand.

Two of the coalition lawyers — Locke Bowman and G. Flint Taylor, both longtime advocates of victims of police brutality — have been vocal throughout the process, but on Thursday, neither returned phone calls, instead relying on the three-paragraph statement.

In a statement, the coalition expressed surprise that Gaughan had gone outside Cook County to find a special prosecutor and raised concerns about the independence of McMahon's team, pointing out that one of them is a former Cook County assistant state's attorney.

Warning: This video contains graphic content. Chicago officials released the police dash-cam video of the October 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald, 17, by a Chicago police officer. The Chicago Tribune edited this version only for length.

Warning: This video contains graphic content. Chicago officials released the police dash-cam video of the October 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald, 17, by a Chicago police officer. The Chicago Tribune edited this version only for length.

"Given the high number of qualified attorneys in Cook County who have the experience, resources and who are fully independent from law enforcement, we're surprised and disappointed that all of them have been passed over in favor of the Kane County state's attorney and his team, which includes a former Cook County assistant state's attorney," the statement said.

Webb, who has served as a special prosecutor five times, including most recently an inquiry into David Koschman's death after a drunken confrontation in 2004 with a nephew of then-Mayor Richard M. Daley, said McMahon would likely begin by reviewing all the evidence, including grand jury transcripts, and determine if it supported the first-degree murder charges.

"I would start with the presumption that the charges were appropriate, but as the case progresses along, he's always got to be willing to reconsider," said Webb, who indicated he had no reason to think the murder charges were improper.

Reached by telephone Thursday, McDonald's great-uncle, the Rev. Marvin Hunter, said the first-degree murder charges were the only ones that fit the facts of the case.

"That was an execution," he said. "This was an unarmed human being, an unarmed child, walking away from him … and he chose to take his life. That's murder."

McMahon, 50, a Republican, was appointed state's attorney of the far west suburban county in 2010 when his predecessor was named a Kane County judge. He was then elected in 2012 to the office in the heavily Republican county. He is seeking re-election this fall after running unopposed in the April Republican primary. He faces no Democratic opponent in November.

During his six years as state's attorney, McMahon has prosecuted one police officer for on-duty misconduct. Elgin police Officer Michael Sullivan was charged in 2011 with felony official misconduct and obstruction of justice after allegedly planting evidence — a cellphone — near the scene of a beating and robbery. Sullivan eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of attempted obstruction of justice and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and two years of probation.

McMahon won praise in 2012 when he tossed the murder conviction of Jonathan Moore after concluding new evidence proved he wasn't the gunman who opened fire near an Aurora laundromat, killing one man and paralyzing another. Moore had been in prison for about a decade.

On Thursday, McMahon told reporters that four other prosecutors — three from Kane County and one from Winnebago County — would assist him in prosecuting Van Dyke. He identified them as Jody Gleason, his top assistant in Kane County; Joseph Cullen and Daniel Weiler, both Kane assistant state's attorneys; and Marilyn Hite Ross, a Winnebago County assistant state's attorney who heads that office's criminal bureau and was a Cook County assistant state's attorney.

"I and this team have one goal in this case, that is to find the truth, to present the truth and ask that justice be served in this case," McMahon said.

Gaughan has imposed a gag order on the attorneys in the case, barring them from making public comments, but McMahon was given permission to speak to reporters Thursday. The longtime judge at the courthouse at 26th Street and California Avenue has also held much of the discussions with the lawyers in the case in his chambers and off the record.

Herbert, Van Dyke's lawyer, has made it clear he had no objection to the appointment of a special prosecutor in the officer's case.

On Thursday, he was unable to comment because of Gaughan's gag order, but his spokeswoman, Anne Kavanaugh, reiterated that position.

"They're prepared to defend the case no matter who the prosecutor is," she said.

Last week, Holmes was appointed to investigate the other officers' conduct at the shooting scene and whether higher-ups assisted in allegedly covering up Van Dyke's role.

The video showed Van Dyke opening fire within seconds of exiting his police SUV as McDonald walked away from police with a knife in his hand, contradicting many of the officers' written accounts that the teen had lunged with the knife.